There are a plethora of ways in which I would like to utilize a blog in my reading classroom. One way I would like to incorporate a blog in my current unit is to have students journal about what they are reading and learning throughout the unit. I have collaborated with the Writing teacher and together we have created a unit based on the Holocaust. We are using several pieces of literature such as the drama The Diary of Anne Frank, which is in the 8th grade literature book, I Never Saw Another Butterfly , a collection of poems written by children in the Terezin concentration camp, and The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. There are also several pieces of non-fiction literature we will read throughout the unit. We will be viewing a couple of movies related to the same topic. I believe that students would learn from one another as they share their insights on these pieces of literature. In class only a couple of students feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and feelings about what they are reading. I believe that in asking all students to post to the blog that they would feel that the blog is a less threatening environment in which to share their thoughts. I would like students to treat each other and the topic with the highest respect.
Another way in which I would like to use a blog is for students to write book recommendations. I have students who are avid readers and even I have difficulty keeping up with all of the books they read. These students are constantly recommending new books that I should read. Some are extremely creative and captive in their descriptions of the books. I also have students on the other end of the spectrum which have great difficulty in choosing and sticking with a book. I believe that I blog such as this would promote more reading throughout the 8th grade.
Are you there, God? It's me, Margaret.
13 years ago
Reading has never really been a strong suit for me. I know that I would be able to relate to those students in your class that do not know what a good book to read would be. I think that would be a great way for some parents too to see what their children are reading as well. Parents would be able to access the blog and see what is also going on in the class. I think that it is a great idea that you have to implement that books that you are reading in your class so that you will be able to have discussions, and those students that do not feel as comfortable talking in front of the class will be able to share their ideas. I would think that in reading if all the students wanted to share their ideas that it would take up a couple of days for them to share. So having a blog in reading would help so that everyone could respond and have their voice heard. I think that it is a great idea that you are collaborating with other teachers so that you will be able to work together to get more participation from more students in your school.
ReplyDeleteSo would you post on a weekly basis? Would you make the students respond to other student’s posts?
I think your ideas are great on how to use blogs. Using it so students can recommend books to other students is a great way to take advantage of what blogs can offer, especially because of the comments feature. How do you ensure that students won't just use the internet to find somebody else's review and then just copy and paste it on the class blog? I know that's a question for all of us, especially since information is so readily available and so fast, but I'm curious as to what you think.
ReplyDeleteAlso, have you ever used pdf's or e-books in your class?